Pepper Ann's 1st Movie
Pepper Ann's 1st Movie ''(also known as ''The 1st Pepper Ann Movie Ever!) is a 2002 American animated musical teen comedy film based on the 1997-2000 Disney animated television series Pepper Ann, ''created by Sue Rose. It was produced by Walt Disney Television Animation, Dimension Films, Columbia Pictures, Paramount Pictures, Disney Channel Movies, Mandeville Films, Film Roman Animation Studios, Spyglass Entertainment and Brenda Chapman Productions and released by Walt Disney Pictures. The film was directed by Brenda Chapman (who also directed ''Prince of Egypt), produced by Todd Lieberman, Melinda Trousdale, Roger Birnbaum, Laura McCreary, Sue Rose, Phil Roman, Lillian Amanda Chapman and Scott M. Gimple and written by Aileen Quinn, Ashley Mendoza, Doug Mitchell, Sherie Pollack, June Diane Raphael and Marianne Chandler with a screenplay by Kellie Lauhon, Maryann Brandon and Drew Barrymore. Its original songs were written and performed by Kathleen Wilhoite, Felicia Barton, Anne Hathaway, Amanda Dianne Foutley and Brenda Chapman with a score by Mark Mothersbaugh and Lee Ann Womack, as well as additional music by Anne Marie McDermott, Kevin Manthei, Pat Irwin, Nathan Wang and Jamshied Sharifi. The movie features an ensemble cast that includes the voice talents of Kathleen Wilhoite, Clea Lewis, Danny Cooksey, Tara Charendoff, Jeff Bennett, Cree Summer, Pamela Segall, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Leigh-Allyn Baker, Anne Hathaway, Marianne Curan, Diane Keaton, Jonathan Taylor Thomas, Rachael Leigh Cook, Lacey Chabert, Cameron Diaz, Marlee Matlin, Christine Baranski, Julia Roberts, Jodie Carlisle, Madeline Zima, Aileen Quinn, Wendie Malick, Elisa Donovan, Amanda Dianne Foutley and Julie Andrews. The film's director Brenda Chapman voices a new Pepper Ann character: Pepper Ann's cousin named Maryann and Mickey, Minnie, Daisy and Goofy (voiced by Wayne Allwine, Russi Taylor, Tress MacNeille and Bill Farmer) make a cameo appearance in the film. The film was first theatrically released onto theaters on May 17, 2002. With an initial worldwide gross of $766 million, Pepper Ann's 1st Movie finished its theatrical run as the highest-grossing release of 2002, the highest-grossing animated film and the second-highest-grossing film of all time. It is also the highest-grossing traditionally animated film of all time, as well as the best-selling film on home video, having sold over 30 million DVDs and VHS tapes. In 2003, Pepper Ann's 1st Movie garnered four Academy Awards for its achievement in four categories: Best Animated Feature, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Original Score and Songs, and the Golden Globe Award for Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy. Following Pepper Ann's 1st Movie's critical success, the film spawned its own direct-to-video spin-off, Maryann's 1st Movie, ''released in February 2005, centered around Maryann (voiced again by Brenda Chapman) and her quirky adventures. Synopsis Get ready to see Pepper Ann like you've never seen her before! In the tradition of The Princess Diaries and directed by Brenda Chapman, who brought you DreamWorks' ''The Prince of Egypt, Disney's hottest animated, red-haired, spunky "too cool to be twelve" hero is back with her theatrical big-screen film debut in "Pepper Ann's 1st Movie", the year's biggest, stoinkiest, and funniest new animated Disney animated movie that everyone will love! In the city of Hazelnut, the rockin' Pepper Ann (voiced by Kathleen Wilhoite) and her friends Nicky and Milo (voiced by Clea Lewis and Danny Cooksey) have one thing in common - they sure do know to have the time of their lives and rock out! As Pepper Ann's friends are invited to a concert at the Hazelnut ampitheatre, they can't wait to see the biggest acts hit the stage - including Flaming Snot, of course! But when Pepper Ann's new cousin Maryann (voiced by Brenda Chapman) enters the picture and meets Pepper Ann for the first time, Pepper Ann's life is totally stoinked! Forced to know what the difference is between a Maryann and a Pepper Ann, will they learn the secret of rockin' out and havin' fun? Filled with new music, adventure, action, fun and laughs, Disney's "Pepper Ann's 1st Movie" is the one movie that will have you saying, "Pepper Ann's Got the Chalk!" over and over! Cast *Kathleen Wilhoite as Pepper Ann Pearson (respective voice) *Cameron Diaz as Miranda *Amanda Dianne Foutley as Stephanie *Brenda Chapman as Maryann *Danny Cooksey as Milo Kamalani (respective voice) *Clea Lewis as Nicky Little (respective voice) *Lacey Chabert as Melinda *Rachael Leigh Cook as Julianne *Anne Hathaway as Lizzie *Jeff Bennett as Dieter Liederhosen, Craig Bean, Grandpa Leo Lilly and Ned Diggity (respective voices) *April Winchell as Lydia Pearson, Sherrie Spleen, Milicent the Militant, Grandma Lillian Lilly and Abriola Stark (respective voices) *Julie Andrews as Velma, Pepper Ann's fun and upbeat godmother *Amy Brenneman as Adrienne *Jonathan Taylor Thomas as Douglas "Doug" Spellman *Pamela Adlon as Margaret Rose "Moose" Pearson and Shawn LeSandre (respective voices) *Wayne Allwine as Mickey *Russi Taylor as Minnie *Jim Cummings as Roland Carter and Superintendent Radcliffe (voices, taken over 1 character from the late Paul Gleason respectively) *Leigh-Allyn Baker as Eileen *Elisa Donovan as Melissa Kavenaugh *Bill Farmer as Goofy *Tress MacNeille as Daisy *Maurice LaMarche as Chuck Pearson and Herbert Hickey (voices, taken over 1 character from the late Don Adams respectively) *Wendie Malick as Diane *Kath Soucie as Gina and Tina/Cissy Rooney *Julia Roberts as Ms. Pauline *Tress MacNeille as Vera Groober-Schwartz (voice, replacing the late Paddi Edwards respectively) *Aileen Quinn as Aunt Marianne Theresa Bartley *Cree Summer as Tessa and Vanessa James (respective voices) *Susan Tolsky as Janie Diggity (respective voice) *Daran Norris as Jojo Diggity (voice, replacing the late Tino Insana respectively) *Jodi Carlisle as Suzanne O'Donnell *Lauren Tom as Alice Kane (respective voice) *Jenna Von Oy as Trinket St. Blaire (respective voice) *Kathy Najimy as Coach Doogan and Margot LeSandre (respective voices) *Madeline Zima as Sabrina *Candi Milo as Constance Goldman and Rose (respective voices) *Tim Allen as Mr. Reason *Marlee Matlin as Dinah *Julia Sweeney as Carlotta Sneed (respective voice) *Christine Baranski as Lorraine *Don Lake as Sherman Finky (respective voice) *Karen Duffy as Sketch (respective voice) *Diane Keaton as Fletch *Sarah Michelle Gellar as Becky *Alecia Moore (Pink) as Tank (voice, replacing the late Brittany Murphy respectively) *Tara Strong as Brenda Jefferson (voice) *Meredith Scot Lynn as Poison (respective voice) *Hattie Winston as Bernice Johnson (voice, replacing the late Isabel Sanford respectively) *Thomas F. Wilson as Coach Bronson (respective voice) *Kevin Michael Richardson as Boris Clapper (voice, replacing the late James Avery respectively) Production The idea for Pepper Ann's 1st Movie was originally conceived in early March 1998 as a direct-to-video television film by Disney's television animation unit (directed by Scott M. Gimple and written by Brenda Chapman), but after different alternative screenings, Walt Disney Pictures, Dimension Films, Columbia Pictures, Paramount Pictures and Disney Channel decided it should be shelved and remade into a theatrical feature film. Among the biggest hype that this movie received was the film's director Brenda Chapman voicing Maryann and the use of "Odorama" cards to enhance the viewing experience, Blockbuster released a scratch and sniff piece of cardboard that was to be scratched and sniffed during the run of the movie. Release During its initial theatrical run, Pepper Ann's 1st Movie was presented in "Smell-O-Vision". During certain scenes in the movie, an icon would pop up on screen with an item inside of it (example: a smelly shoe). When this happened, audience members would smell a scratch-and-sniff card (which were handed out at the box office) with the corresponding image. For Pepper Ann's 1st Movie's first film trailer, Disney opted to feature a single scene, the entire opening sequence with a new revamped movie mix version of the Pepper Ann main title theme, Buena Vista Pictures Distribution president Dick Cook said the decision was made for such an approach because "we were all so taken by the beauty and majesty of this piece that we felt like it was probably one of the best four minutes of film that we've seen", and Mandeville Films' Todd Lieberman added that "the 2002 movie mix version of the Pepper Ann theme song" worked as a trailer as it "came off so strong, and so good, and ended with such a bang". The trailer was released in March 2002, accompanying Clockstoppers ''and ''Ice Age ''in theaters; by then, only a third of ''Pepper Ann's 1st Movie ''had been completed. Audience reaction was enthusiastic, causing Hahn to have some initial concerns as he became afraid of not living up to the expectations raised by the preview. Prior to the film's release, Disney did 11 test screenings. ''Pepper Ann's 1st Movie had a limited release in North America on Tuesday, May 13, 2002, playing in only two theaters, El Capitan Theater in Los Angeles and Radio City Music Hall in New York City featuring live shows with ticket prices up to $30. The wide release followed in theaters nationwide on May 17, 2002, in 2,550 screens. The digital surround sound of the film led many of those theaters to implement Dolby, DTS and SDDS's newest sound systems. Upon release, Pepper Ann's 1st Movie was accompanied by an extensive marketing campaign which included tie-ins with Burger King, Nabisco, Mattel, Kodak, Nestlé and Payless ShoeSource, and various merchandise, accounting 186 licensed products. In 2003, Disney earned approximately $1 billion with products based on the film, with $214 million for Pepper Ann's 1st Movie ''toys during Christmas 2002 alone. 'Box office' A large promotion campaign preceded ''Pepper Ann's 1st Movie's debut in theaters, with the film's trailer being attached to most Disney VHS and DVD releases, and numerous tie-ins and licensees being released. After a limited release on May 13, 2002, Pepper Ann's 1st Movie debuted in all 137 theaters on May 17, 2002, grossing $19.2 million in its opening weekend – number two at the box office, behind the 2002 Special Edition version of Disney's Beauty and the Beast. ''It took eight weeks for the film to reach number one at the US box office, breaking the record for the week between Christmas and New Year's Eve and even the whole summer season with $32.2 million. The film held the top spot five times during its 22-week run. ''Pepper Ann's 1st Movie ''was the most successful film of 2002 grossing $217 million in the United States and over $504 million worldwide. It was the biggest gross for an animated film until ''Frozen two years later, and was the first full-length animated film to gross $200 million in North America. Home media Pepper Ann's 1st Movie ''was first released on VHS and DVD in the United States on February 11, 2003. The DVD and VHS tape contained three special sneak peeks at three of Walt Disney Pictures' then-upcoming new live-action features: "The Cheetah Girls", "The Lizzie McGuire Movie" and "The Amanda Dianne Foutley Diaries." In addition, Deluxe Editions of both formats were released. The VHS Deluxe Edition included the film, an exclusive lithograph of Pepper Ann and Maryann (in some editions), a commemorative "Pepper Ann's 1st Movie" epigraph, six concept art lithographs, another tape with the half-hour TV special ''The Making of Pepper Ann's 1st Movie and a certificate of authenticity. The VHS tape and DVD quickly became the best-selling videotape and DVD of all time: 4.5 million tapes were sold on the first day and ultimately sales totaled more than 30 million before these home video versions went into moratorium in 2004. The VHS releases have sold a total of 32 million units in North America, and grossed $520 million in sales revenue. In addition, 23 million units were shipped overseas to international markets. On June 14, 2007, the film was re-released on DVD and released on Blu-ray in high definition for the first time, titled Pepper Ann's 1st Movie: The Extended 10th Pepper Ann-iversary Edition, as part of Disney's Platinum Edition line of animated classic DVDs. The DVD and Blu-ray release featured two versions of the movie on the first disc, a remastered and extended version with pristine 1080p high-def picture and stunning Dolby TrueHD 7.1 audio created for the 2007 Disney Digital 3D release and an edited version of the Disney Digital 3D release purporting to be the original 2002 theatrical version. A second disc, with new bonus features, was also included in the Blu-ray and DVD release. The film's soundtrack was provided both in its original Dolby Digital 5.1 track and in a new Disney Enhanced Home Theater Mix, making this one of the first Disney DVDs so equipped. By means of seamless branching, the film could be viewed either with or without a newly created scene – a short conversation in the film replaced with a complete song ("Lovin' These Pepper Ann and Maryann Things That You Do"). A Special Collector's Gift Set was also released, containing the DVD set, five exclusive lithographed character portraits (new sketches created and signed by the original character animators), and an introductory book entitled The Journey. The Platinum 10th Pepper Ann-iversary Edition of Pepper Ann's 1st Movie featured changes made to the film during its Disney Digital 3D re-release, including re-drawn versions of different Maryanns in the "Whatever Makes You Feel Like a Maryann" sequence, as well as other alterations. More than two million copies of the Platinum Edition DVD and Blu-ray units were sold on the first day of release. Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment released the Diamond Edition of Pepper Ann's 1st Movie ''on June 25, 2013. This marks the first time that the film has been released in high-definition Blu-ray, Digital HD and on Blu-ray 3D. The initial release was produced in two different packages: a two-disc version with Blu-ray and DVD and a four-disc version with Blu-ray, DVD, Blu-ray 3D, and a digital copy. A standalone single-disc DVD release of the film with new and classic bonus features also followed on July 3, 2013. The Diamond Edition topped the Blu-ray charts with over 1.5 million copies sold. The film sold 3.83 million Blu-ray units in total, leading to a $101.14 million income. "Pepper Ann's 1st Movie" was once again released to home media as part of the ''Walt Disney Signature Collection first released on Digital HD on August 15, 2017, and on Blu-ray and DVD on August 29, 2017. Pepper Ann's 1st Movie ''was released on Ultra HD Blu-ray and 4K digital download on December 3, 2018. It was the first animated "classic" Disney film to be re-released in 4K. Reception 'Critical reception' The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported that 95% of critics gave the film a positive review based on a sample of 73 reviews, with an average rating of 8.14/10. The site's consensus reads, "A highly entertaining entry in Disney's renaissance era, ''Pepper Ann's 1st Movie ''is beautifully drawn, with film-written and fan-favorite classic songs and a cast of scene-stealing characters." On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 86 out of 100 based on 25 critics, indicating "universal acclaim". Most critics' praise went to film director Brenda Chapman's stunning performance as Maryann, with Janet Maslin of ''The New York Times declaring that children "needn't know precisely what Ms. Chapman is evoking to understand how funny she is.", and Roger Ebert commenting that Chapman and animation "were born for one another". Warner Bros. Cartoons director Chuck Jones even called the film "the funniest feature ever made." Furthermore, English-Irish comedian Spike Milligan considered it to be the greatest film of all time. James Berardinelli gave it 3.5 out of 4 stars, praising the "crisp visuals and wonderful song-and-dance numbers." Peter Travers of Rolling Stone said the comedy made the film accessible to both tweens, children and adults, a vision shared with Desson Howe of The Washington Post, who also said "kids are still going to be entranced by the laughs, action, fun and adventure." Brian Lowry of Variety praised the cast of characters, describing the expressive magic carpet as "its most remarkable accomplishment" and considered that "Pepper Ann's 1st Movie overcomes most story flaws thanks to sheer technical virtuosity." 'Accolades' ''Pepper Ann's 1st Movie ''also received many award nominations, mostly for its music. It won two Academy Awards, Best Original Score and Best Original Song for "Pepper Ann" (performed by Jodi Benson, Paige O'Hara, Aileen Quinn, Brenda Chapman and Wendie Malick) and receiving nominations for Best Song ("Whatever Makes You Feel Like a Maryann", performed by Madonna), Best Sound Editing (Mark A. Mangini), and Best Sound (Terry Porter, Mel Metcalfe, David J. Hudson and Doc Kane). At the Golden Globes, ''Pepper Ann's 1st Movie ''won Best Original Song ("Pepper Ann", performed by Paige O'Hara, Jodi Benson, Aileen Quinn, Wendie Malick and Brenda Chapman) and Best Original Score, as well as a Special Achievement Award for Brenda Chapman, with a nomination for Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy. Other awards included the Annie Award for Best Animated Feature, a MTV Movie Award for Best Comedic Performance to Brenda Chapman, the Best Animated Feature by the Los Angeles Film Critics Association, and four Grammy Awards, Best Soundtrack Album, and Song of the Year, Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal and Best Song Written Specifically for a Motion Picture or for Television for "Pepper Ann". The film is recognized by American Film Institute in these lists: 2004: AFI's 100 Years...100 Songs: *"Whatever Makes You Feel Like a Maryann" – Nominated *"Pepper Ann" – Nominated